Today in American and Military History, August 17, 1590: After the establishment of an English colony on Roanoke Island in 1587 led by John White, under its benefactor Sir Walter Raleigh, White will return to the colony. He will find no trace of the colonists and they will enter history as The Lost Colony. Roanoke Island is at the time in Virginia. Today it is in Dare County, North Carolina. White will work to establish the colony in 1587 and then return to England for additional supplies and colonists. Upon his arrival in England he is not allowed to return to his colony due to the fact that England is now at war with Spain and Queen Elizabeth I requires his ship and will not return it to John White. Even Sir Walter Raleigh cannot convince the Queen to release the vessel as the colony must be re-supplied. Finally the ship is released and White returns to Roanoke Island post-haste but does not arrive until three years later on August 17, 1590. He finds nothing but a dilapidated fort. Every one is missing and nothing truly tells of where they went. The sign that he instructed them to leave should they have been in distress was nowhere to be found, an English version of a Maltese Cross carved in a nearby and easy to find tree. He does not find the sign but finds two clues and they are of no help. On a tree he finds the word CRO carved and on a fence he finds carved the word CROATOAN, possibly the entire form of the word carved in the tree. It may have referred to the Croatoan Indians, which he had established good relations with in 1587, or it may have referred to Croatoan Island, todays Hatteras Island. Wishing to search Croatoan Island his men refused as an Atlantic storm was approaching and even then it was widely known that August storms from the Atlantic could be very devastating. The expedition sailed the following day to England without ever searching for the Lost Colony. To this day the mystery remains without explanation. Later expeditions told of finding blue-eyed Indians in the area but none of those questioned ever revealed any facts of the lost colonists. Today the story is told on Roanoke Island with the outdoor drama, The Lost Colony. Its conclusions are much the same as all, still leaving the intriguing mystery unsolved. It has been continuously running since 1937 and holds the distinction of being the longest-running symphonic outdoor drama in our nation. Surprisingly, it was only meant to run for one season but given great accolades, it continued and has become a very popular North Carolina tradition. It cast has seen many famous members and was the theatrical start of many including Andy Griffith, who made his final home next door in Manteo, North Carolina. Some other notable actors who got their start in the business with the production were Leon Rippy, Chris Elliott, Eileen Fulton, Terrence Mann and R.G. Armstrong who got their stage legs at the Waterside Theater. Academy Award-Winner Ted Tally spent a summer in the production long before winning top honors for his screenplay of the motion picture The Silence of the Lambs. Tallys niece appeared in the 2008 production. Any vacation to the North Carolina Outer Banks should definitely include an evening seeing The Lost Colony. (1) The colonys leader, John White, finds the word CROATOAN carved into a tree at the site of the Lost Colony. (2) The location of the colonys fort, Fort Raleigh, on Roanoke Island, North Carolina. Images courtesy of the Roanoke Island Visitors Center.
Posted on: Sun, 17 Aug 2014 21:17:12 +0000